Colts rally to dispose of Atlanta

ATLANTA – Peyton Manning and the Indianapolis Colts looked more like themselves Thursday night.

All it took was a trip to Atlanta.

Manning threw three touchdown passes, Anthony Gonzalez had 105 yards receiving and the defending Super Bowl champions, after getting stunned with 10 quick points by the Falcons, rebounded for a 31-13 victory.

Indianapolis (9-2) had struggled the past three weeks, losing twice and pulling out a lackluster win over Kansas City at home. The Colts’ malaise carried over the first quarter at the Georgia Dome, with the Falcons striking for Morten Andersen’s 34-yard field goal and Joey Harrington’s 48-yard touchdown pass to Roddy White.

But any thoughts the Falcons (3-8) had of pulling off a huge upset were quickly wiped out by Manning. He threw all three of his TD passes in the second quarter, going 23 yards to Reggie Wayne, 8 yards to Dallas Clark and 5 yards to Ben Utecht.

Gonzalez didn’t get to the end zone, but he was Manning’s favorite receiver. He hauled in a 35-yard pass that set up Wayne’s TD and a 32-yarder that led to Clark’s score.

Manning was 22 for 32 for 272 yards.

After missing the past two games with a broken thumb, Gonzalez’s return was a boost for a Colts’ offense still plagued by injuries. Perennial Pro Bowl receiver Marvin Harrison missed his fifth straight game with an ailing left knee. Indy also was missing two starting linemen, Tony Ugoh and Ryan Diem.

The Colts rallied for a 21-13 lead by halftime, and Atlanta faded away over the final two quarters, managing just 92 yards after the break.

The only highlight for the Falcons was Warrick Dunn becoming the 22nd rusher in NFL history to reach 10,000 yards. He made it on a 2-yard run early in the second quarter. He finished with 70 yards.